"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths." Northwoods is a ministry dedicated to refreshing Christians and challenging them to search for the truth in Christianity, politics, sociology, and science

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Thursday, April 13, 2017

A Pakistani student has been beaten to death by a mob at his university campus, after he was accused of having blasphemous views. At least 10 people have been arrested, according to local authorities.

Mashal Khan was stripped naked and beaten by an angry mob of around 10 students shouting “Allahu Akbar” on Thursday, according to Reuters. He was beaten so brutally that his skull eventually caved in, according to video footage obtained by the media outlet.

"He was beaten with sticks, bricks and hands," senior police official Niaz Saeed told AFP, adding that hundreds of people – considerably more than the number arrested – were involved in the attack.

Sources from the university told local media that Khan was also stripped and shot, however this has not been confirmed by officials.

A video of the incident, which took place at a college campus in the northern city of Mardan, was also published online by local media outlet Dawn. However, its authenticity cannot be verified by RT.

Reuters reported that Khan was beaten after writing social media posts which were deemed blasphemous.

However, a source told AFP that the incident occurred not because of social media posts, but because Khan had gotten into a debate about religious views on Thursday. The argument reportedly became so heated that teachers had to lock Khan in a room for his safety.

"But the enraged students grew to a mob and they attacked the room," the source said.

Local police chief Mohammad Alam Shinwari said that the students wanted to burn Khan's body after killing him, according to Reuters. However, AFP cited university sources as saying he was instead thrown from the second floor of his student residency.

Shinwari said that 10 students have been arrested following the attack, although police told AFP that 11 students had been detained. Mardan District Police Officer Dr. Mian Saeed said that at least 45 people have been arrested, according to Dawn.

Saeed confirmed that authorities are investigating the details, but that they "cannot saying anything" about the motive at this time.

Blasphemy is an extremely serious accusation in Muslim-majority Pakistan, and at least 65 people have been murdered over such allegations since 1990. Insulting the Prophet Muhammad is punished as a capital crime, and hundreds are currently on death row for allegedly doing so.

Just last month, the country's prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, issued an order for the removal of blasphemous content online, saying that anyone who posts such content should face "strict punishment under the law."

Meanwhile, Pakistani online activists believe blasphemy crackdowns on social media are attempts by the country's military to limit dissent on human rights violations.

Five online activists disappeared in January and were publicly accused of blasphemy while they were missing. Four of them have since reappeared, with at least one saying he was abducted and interrogated by Pakistan's intelligence agencies.

The country's government denied any part in the activists' disappearances.

Khan's death comes amid international calls to release Asia Bibi, a Pakistani Christian woman who was sentenced to death in 2010 for allegedly insulting the Prophet Muhammad after an argument with a group of Muslim women.

Those who stand up against alleged blasphemy are often hailed as heroes in Pakistan. In 2011, a bodyguard assassinated Punjab provincial governor Salman Taseer after the politician called for blasphemy law reforms. The killer, who was put to death last year, has been dubbed a martyr to Islam by religious hard-liners, and a shrine has been erected at his grave.

This story is very much reminiscent of the brutal torture and murder of Farkhunda, a student of Islam who called out an Imam for selling charms. The Imam yelled out that she, Farkhunda, had burned a Quran and immediately a crowd formed and went hysterical. Farkhunda, who was a far better Muslim than the Imam or any of her torturers, was beaten, dragged through town behind a car, thrown into a revine, stoned, and set on fire.

This is Islam. These are ordinary Muslims just as the students of Marden University are. This is not religion, it is madness! Europeans and Americans don't realize how incredibly violent these people can instantly become at the thought of someone blaspheming their pathetic religion.

Yesterday, Canada bestowed Malala with honourary Canadian Citizenship; and honour I completely agree with. Malala is a hero and deserves every accolade she receives. But in a speech she condemned terrorists as not being part of her religion - a religion of which 1.5 billion people live in peace. The optimistic young woman is, unfortunately, misguided here.

Wikipedia claims there were 1.6 billion Muslims in 2010, which means there are probably close to 1.7 billion today. How many are living in peace?

Well, if Pakistan was living in peace Malala could go home, but she hasn't returned to her native country for years because she knows she will be shot again if she does. Remember Benazir Bhutto? Pakistan has 182 million Muslims.

How many other Muslims live in peace?

India has more Muslims than Pakistan and a history of extreme violence between them and Hindus.

Nigeria has about 85 million Muslims and there is constant war and terrorism in the north against Christians.

Iran has about 80 million Muslims who are generally peaceful but who's leadership is involved in terrorism in Syria and Lebanon, and who are fighting proxy wars against Saudi Arabia in Syria and Yemen.

Turkey has about 80 million Muslims and there are frequent terrorist attacks, attempted coups, wars with Kurds, and others on their borders.

Iraq has about 33 million Muslims who have not known peace in 15 years and only knew peace before that (except for the Kurds) because of a despot that had people living in fear.

Shall we talk about Afghanistan, Egypt, Yemen, Sudan, Ethiopia, Somalia, Yemen, China, etc., etc? Is there any peace in any of those countries?

This little sample adds up to more than 800 million Muslims, close to half of all Muslims. Add to that the number of Muslims in Europe and elsewhere who are not peaceful - hundreds of Pakistani Muslims involved in raping and sex trafficking children in Britain, no-go zones throughout Europe where terrorists are protected and riots can break out instantly. Where are the peaceful Muslims? It's a myth! There is no peace in Islam!